The present disclosure relates generally to a fuel reformer, and more particularly to a plasmatron having an air jacket and method for operating the same.
Hydrogen has been used as a fuel or fuel additive for an internal combustion engine in an effort to reduce emissions from the engine. One manner of producing hydrogen for use with an internal combustion is by the operation of a plasmatron. A plasmatron reforms hydrocarbon fuel into a reformed gas such as hydrogen-rich gas. Specifically, a plasmatron heats an electrically conducting gas either by an arc discharge or by a high frequency inductive or microwave discharge. The internal combustion engine combusts the hydrogen-rich gas from the plasmatron either as the sole source of fuel, or in conjunction with hydrocarbon fuels.
A plasmatron may also be utilized to supply hydrogen-rich gas to devices other than internal combustion engines. For example, hydrogen-rich gas reformed by a plasmatron may be supplied to a fuel cell for use by the fuel cell in the production of electrical energy.
Systems including plasmatrons are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,425,332 issued to Rabinovich et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,437,250 issued to Rabinovich et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,409,784 issued to Brumberg et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,554 issued to Cohn, et al., the disclosures of each of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
According to one aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a plasmatron. The plasmatron reforms hydrocarbon fuels so as to produce a reformed gas which is supplied to an external device such as an internal combustion engine or a fuel cell. The plasmatron includes an air jacket which removes heat from the reaction chamber of the plasmatron and supplies heated air to the plasma-generating assembly of the plasmatron.
A method of operating a plasmatron is also disclosed herein. The method includes the step of reforming a fuel in a reaction chamber defined in a plasmatron housing so as to produce a reformed gas. The method also includes the step of advancing air through a jacket and into the reaction chamber. The jacket is positioned around a portion of the periphery of the housing.
According to another aspect of the disclosure, there is provided an apparatus for reforming hydrocarbon fuel into a reformed gas. The apparatus includes a housing having a reaction chamber defined therein and a jacket having an air chamber defined therein. The jacket is positioned around a portion of the periphery of the housing. The air chamber is in fluid communication with the reaction chamber.